editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Tom Gjelten covers issues of religion, faith, and belief for NPR News, a beat that encompasses such areas as the changing religious landscape in America, the formation of personal identity, the role of religion in politics, and social and cultural conflict arising from religious differences. His reporting draws on his many years covering national and international news from posts in Washington and around the world.In 1986, Gjelten became one of NPR's pioneer foreign correspondents, posted first in Latin America and then in Central Europe. In the years that followed, he covered the wars in Central America, social and political strife in South America, the first Gulf War, the wars in the former Yugoslavia, and the transitions to democracy in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.Gjelten's latest book is A Nation of Nations: A Great American Immigration Story, published in 2015. His reporting from Sarajevo from 1992 to 1994 was the basis for his book Sarajevo Daily: A City and ItsNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Tom GjeltenMon, 28 Nov 2016 09:03:23 +0000Tom Gjeltenhttp://wrvo.org
Tom GjeltenFormer Cuban leader Fidel Castro has died at age 90, according to Cuban state media, confirms NPR.Castro, who took power in the Cuban revolution in 1959, led his country for nearly 50 years.After undergoing intestinal surgery, Castro had ceded power in July 2006, to his younger brother Raul, who announced his death late Friday on Cuban state television.Under Fidel Castro's direction, Cuba became the one and only communist state in the Western Hemisphere.One of the most prominent international figures in the last half of the 20th century, Castro inspired both passionate love and hate. Many who later lost faith in him can remember how they once admired the man who needed just a dozen men to launch the Cuban revolution."He was not a corrupt politician as in the past we used to have," says Domingo Amuchastegui, who was a diplomat in Castro's government until he fled Cuba in 1994. "He was a very promising, courageous, dedicated, intelligent kind of people — an excellent fighter, a manFormer Cuban Leader Fidel Castro Dies At Age 90http://wrvo.org/post/former-cuban-leader-fidel-castro-dies-age-90
96477 as http://wrvo.orgSat, 26 Nov 2016 06:03:00 +0000Former Cuban Leader Fidel Castro Dies At Age 90Tom GjeltenFive centuries ago, Christians in Europe who hoped to go to heaven knew they might first have to spend a few thousand years in a fiery purgatory, where they would be purified of their outstanding sins.It was not a pleasant thought, but the Catholic Church offered some hope: A cash offering to the local priest could buy an "indulgence" certificate, entitling the believer to a shorter purgatory sentence.In practice, the money often went into the pockets of corrupt church officials and their political allies. So in 1517 a German monk named Martin Luther decided to protest the practice. On or about Oct. 31 of that year, he publicly presented 95 handwritten "theses" against the sale of indulgences.Luther expected only to prompt a debate within Christian circles, but with that act he sparked a revolution. The Protestant Reformation that followed his protest upended the political and ecclesiastical order across Europe.For the upcoming 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the MinneapolisHow Technology Helped Martin Luther Change Christianityhttp://wrvo.org/post/how-technology-helped-martin-luther-change-christianity
96293 as http://wrvo.orgSun, 20 Nov 2016 16:01:00 +0000How Technology Helped Martin Luther Change ChristianityTom GjeltenFor more than 30 years, conservative evangelical Christians have been tied to the Republican Party. While the pattern seems to be holding this year, with most conservative white Christians supporting Donald Trump, some evangelical leaders are now questioning the logic behind the political alliance.Prominent among them is Russell Moore, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant church group in the United States. In a recent lecture titled "Can the Religious Right Be Saved?" Moore recalled the first time he noticed conservative Christian activists distributing voting guides at his church."Even as a teenager," Moore said, "I could recognize that the issues chosen just happened to be the same as that year's talking points from the Republican National Committee." Christian political outreach, he said, had already moved beyond simple matters of faith."On many issues, there did seem to be a clear Christian position — onEvangelicals Consider Whether God Really Cares How They Votehttp://wrvo.org/post/evangelicals-consider-whether-god-really-cares-how-they-vote
95493 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 01 Nov 2016 20:40:00 +0000Evangelicals Consider Whether God Really Cares How They VoteTom GjeltenFreedom of religion is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, but to Dan Meyer, a North Carolina businessman, that does not mean the Founding Fathers were not inspired by God."Many documents demonstrate that they really received divine guidance in putting together that constitution," he says. "It's not the Bible. It is a man-made document. But most of the writers of that document acknowledged that God gave them guidance and wisdom in putting that document together."Meyer, 70, recently retired as president of the Chamber of Commerce in the North Carolina mountain town of Boone. Previously he worked as a marriage counselor and ran a retirement home. But he sees the world, and his country, primarily through the lens of his Christian faith. America, he thinks, has abandoned the principles on which it was based, including a deference to God."The separation of church and state has totally been misconstrued and misused to malign Christianity and to separate the Christian foundations of ourFor This Christian N.C. Man, Candidates' 'Morality Issues' Give Pausehttp://wrvo.org/post/christian-nc-man-candidates-morality-issues-give-pause
94759 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 13 Oct 2016 19:22:00 +0000For This Christian N.C. Man, Candidates' 'Morality Issues' Give PauseTom GjeltenFifteen years after the attacks of Sept. 11, Americans have grown aware not only of the danger of terrorism but also of the reality that their nation is far less white, Christian and European than it used to be."Culturally, we're a country of Bollywood and bhangra and tai chi and yoga and salsa and burritos and halal and kosher," says Diana Eck, professor of comparative religion at Harvard University and author of A New Religious America.Through her direction of the Pluralism Project at Harvard, Eck and her researchers have documented the growth of an "interfaith infrastructure" in the country."After 9/11," she says, "it became important to know more clearly who is in our community. The level of ignorance was cracked. It is far from solved, but I think 9/11 did bring a moment of awakening that the 'we' of the United States is changing."A recognition of America's increased diversity is especially critical for the Muslim American community. The Sept. 11 attacks were carried out in theSept. 11 Marked Turning Point For Muslims In Increasingly Diverse Americahttp://wrvo.org/post/sept-11-marked-turning-point-muslims-increasingly-diverse-america
93349 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 07 Sep 2016 09:07:00 +0000Sept. 11 Marked Turning Point For Muslims In Increasingly Diverse AmericaTom GjeltenHundreds of Catholics have been declared saints in recent decades, but few with the acclaim accorded Mother Teresa, set to be canonized by Pope Francis on Sunday, largely in recognition of her service to the poor in India."When I was coming of age, she was the living saint," says the Most Rev. Robert Barron, the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. "If you were saying, 'Who is someone today that would really embody the Christian life?' you would turn to Mother Teresa of Calcutta."Born Agnes Bojaxhiu to an Albanian family in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia, Mother Teresa became world-famous for her devotion to the destitute and dying. The religious congregation she established in 1950, the Missionaries of Charity, now counts more than 4,500 religious sisters around the world. In 1979, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her lifetime of service.Humanitarian work alone, however, is not sufficient for canonization in the Catholic Church. Normally, a candidateHow The Catholic Church Documented Mother Teresa's 2 Miracleshttp://wrvo.org/post/how-catholic-church-documented-mother-teresas-2-miracles
93091 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 31 Aug 2016 09:10:00 +0000How The Catholic Church Documented Mother Teresa's 2 MiraclesTom GjeltenChurchgoing Americans say their preachers often speak out on hot social and political issues and occasionally back or oppose particular candidates in defiance of U.S. law prohibiting such endorsements.The findings from a new survey by the Pew Research Center suggest that the 1954 "Johnson Amendment" regulating political activity by churches and other charitable organizations has had limited impact in restricting such speech.The 2016 Republican platform calls for a repeal of the Johnson Amendment, and GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump has promised that if elected he would work to have the law overturned.The law, which applies to any tax-exempt charitable organization, bars such groups "from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office." Organizations that violate the ban could lose their tax-exempt status.Some church groups have vigorously opposed the restriction as anPolitics Still Prevalent In The Pulpit, Survey Shows http://wrvo.org/post/politics-still-prevalent-pulpit-survey-shows
92186 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 09 Aug 2016 15:13:00 +0000Politics Still Prevalent In The Pulpit, Survey Shows Tom Gjelten(Editor's note: Both major presidential candidates this year are Protestants. Both of their running mates were raised as Catholics. Beyond that, their faith profiles are very different. We dug into the faiths of the Republican candidates below and of the Democratic ticket here.)In his speech to the Republican convention, Donald Trump thanked "the evangelical and religious community" for supporting his candidacy, but then added, "I'm not sure I totally deserve it." Trump does not often express humility, but in this case he seemed to be acknowledging a fairly obvious point.The Pew Research Center's January 2016 survey of Americans' views of their presidential candidates found only 30 percent regarded Trump as "very or somewhat" religious. Sixty percent said Trump was "not too" or "not at all" religious. No candidate, Republican or Democrat, had a lower religiosity score.He has said a Bible his mother gave him as a youngster is "very special to me." However, Trump faced criticism after heHow Positive Thinking, Prosperity Gospel Define Donald Trump's Faith Outlookhttp://wrvo.org/post/how-positive-thinking-prosperity-gospel-define-donald-trumps-faith-outlook
91930 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 03 Aug 2016 18:32:00 +0000How Positive Thinking, Prosperity Gospel Define Donald Trump's Faith OutlookTom Gjelten(Editor's note: Both major presidential candidates this year are Protestants. Both of their running mates were raised as Catholics. Beyond that, their faith profiles are very different. We dug into the faiths of the Democratic candidates below and of the Republican ticket here.)Tim Kaine, growing up in Kansas City, says his parents were such devoted Catholics that they did not let a Sunday go by without making sure their children attended church, even if it meant finding the one parish in town that offered a nighttime mass.Hillary Clinton had a comparable religious upbringing in Park Ridge, Ill., where she and her family were regulars at the First United Methodist Church."Our spiritual life as a family was spirited and constant," the Democratic presidential nominee wrote in her 1996 memoir, It Takes a Village. "We talked with God, walked with God, ate, studied, and argued with God. Each night, we knelt by our beds to pray before we went to sleep. We said grace at dinner, thanking GodClinton, Kaine Driven By Their Faith In The 'Social Gospel'http://wrvo.org/post/clinton-kaine-driven-their-faith-social-gospel
91931 as http://wrvo.orgWed, 03 Aug 2016 18:27:00 +0000Clinton, Kaine Driven By Their Faith In The 'Social Gospel'Tom GjeltenThe Jews who immigrated to America in the early 20th century brought with them their history as a persecuted people. Many were fleeing pogroms and anti-Semitic attacks in Europe, and those experiences bonded them to other groups that also faced discrimination.The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, was established by Jewish leaders to stop "the defamation of the Jewish people" but also "to put an end forever to unfair and unjust discrimination against ... any sect or body of citizens." That mission led to an early alliance with African-Americans, one that bore fruit in the civil rights movement."As I think about the work between the NAACP and the ADL, it is indeed an intersection in values, a convergence in interests," said NAACP Vice President Hilary Shelton, speaking at a recent ADL "leadership summit" in Washington. Shelton noted that Jewish civil rights activists Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman were murdered in Mississippi along with their African-American colleague JamesAnti-Defamation League Chief Faces Challenge Trying To Renew Civil Rights Activismhttp://wrvo.org/post/defamation-league-chief-faces-challenge-trying-renew-civil-rights-activism
89174 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 31 May 2016 08:32:00 +0000Anti-Defamation League Chief Faces Challenge Trying To Renew Civil Rights ActivismTom GjeltenAmerica's culture war, waged in recent years over gender roles, sexuality and the definition of marriage, is increasingly being fought inside evangelical Christian circles. On one side are the Christians determined to resist trends in secular society that appear to conflict with biblical teaching. On the other side are the evangelicals willing to live with those trends.For Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., the key question is "whether or not there is a binding morality to which everyone is accountable."Mohler is a co-founder of the biannual Together for the Gospel conference, which brought together thousands of evangelicals last month at a sports center in Louisville, a few miles from the Southern Baptist campus. Electronic signs around the top of the arena carried such messages as "We Were Born Out of Protest" and "We Stand on Scripture Alone, Not Man's Wisdom.""Our theme for this year is, 'We Protest,' " Mohler tells NPR. "YouAs U.S. Attitudes Change, Some Evangelicals Dig In; Others Adapthttp://wrvo.org/post/us-attitudes-change-some-evangelicals-dig-others-adapt
88345 as http://wrvo.orgTue, 10 May 2016 09:05:00 +0000As U.S. Attitudes Change, Some Evangelicals Dig In; Others AdaptTom GjeltenThe global refugee crisis, political strife and economic dislocation all contributed to a worldwide deterioration of religious freedom in 2015 and an increase in "societal intolerance," according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom."At best, in most of the countries we cover, religious freedom conditions have failed to improve," says Princeton professor Robert George, the USCIRF chairman. "At worst, they've spiraled downward."In its annual report, the commission identified 17 countries as "Tier One" concerns, meaning they have "particularly severe religious violations of religious freedom that are systematic, ongoing, and egregious." That category includes Myanmar, where Rohingya Muslims are denied voting rights and access to health care; Tajikistan, where the government suppresses all religious activity not under its direct control; and Nigeria, where the commission concluded that the government has "no effective strategies to stem the violence" carried out by2015 Saw A Decrease In Religious Freedom Around The World, Says Annual Reporthttp://wrvo.org/post/2015-saw-decrease-religious-freedom-around-world-says-annual-report
88029 as http://wrvo.orgMon, 02 May 2016 22:59:00 +00002015 Saw A Decrease In Religious Freedom Around The World, Says Annual ReportTom GjeltenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.U.S. Catholics Divided Over Pope Francis' Family Life Guidelineshttp://wrvo.org/post/us-catholics-divided-over-pope-francis-family-life-guidelines
86931 as http://wrvo.orgFri, 08 Apr 2016 20:26:00 +0000U.S. Catholics Divided Over Pope Francis' Family Life GuidelinesTom GjeltenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.U.S. Catholics Divided Over Pope Francis' Family Life Guidelineshttp://wrvo.org/post/us-catholics-divided-over-pope-francis-family-life-guidelines-0
86932 as http://wrvo.orgFri, 08 Apr 2016 20:26:00 +0000U.S. Catholics Divided Over Pope Francis' Family Life GuidelinesTom GjeltenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Morgan Freeman Takes On Omniscient View To Explore Big Uncertainties In 'God'http://wrvo.org/post/morgan-freeman-takes-omniscient-view-explore-big-uncertainties-god
86682 as http://wrvo.orgSun, 03 Apr 2016 11:58:00 +0000Morgan Freeman Takes On Omniscient View To Explore Big Uncertainties In 'God'Tom GjeltenEditor's note: Radovan Karadzic was one of the dominant figures of the Bosnian war, serving as president of the "Serb Republic" in Bosnia from 1992 to 1995. The International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague on Thursday found him guilty of multiple crimes, including the slaughter of about 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the town of Srebrenica. NPR's Tom Gjelten covered the war in Bosnia, and Karadzic, for years.Given all that has happened in the last 20 years, many people will not recall the war in Bosnia. Remind us what happened.Bosnia was one of the six republics that constituted Yugoslavia, an ethnically mixed country in southeast Europe. The Yugoslav president, Slobodan Milosevic, a Serb nationalist, helped stoke ethnic tensions in the country that led to its breakup.Serb nationalists in Bosnia, led by Karadzic, created a separate "Serb Republic" in Bosnia and attempted to "cleanse" the territory under their control of Muslims and other non-Serbs. The subsequent war in Bosnia resultedTwo Decades After The War, A Genocide Conviction For Radovan Karadzichttp://wrvo.org/post/two-decades-after-war-genocide-conviction-radovan-karadzic
86276 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 24 Mar 2016 22:59:00 +0000Two Decades After The War, A Genocide Conviction For Radovan KaradzicTom GjeltenCopyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.State Department Declares ISIS Attacks On Christians Constitute Genocidehttp://wrvo.org/post/state-department-declares-isis-attacks-christians-constitute-genocide
85966 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 17 Mar 2016 20:29:00 +0000State Department Declares ISIS Attacks On Christians Constitute GenocideTom GjeltenThe religion of Islam was founded by Muhammad, the 7th century prophet whom Muslims call "the messenger of God."They don't consider him divine, but they follow his teachings closely. Good Muslims are taught to emulate the prophet in all matters, personal, spiritual and worldly.Perhaps no time in recent history has it been more important to do as the Prophet Muhammad did — and not as someone says he did.With terror groups like ISIS now invoking his name, many Muslim leaders say radicals who cite the prophet to justify violence misrepresent his teachings.Some Muslim leaders argue that young Muslims need a firmer grounding in their own faith and the prophetic tradition, both to equip them better to counter religious propagandists and also to bind them more closely to Islam.Most of what is known about how Muhammad lived is set down in the Hadith, which consist of recollections of the prophet's life by his companions, first passed on orally and later put down in writing. Taken together,Fighting Extremism With Knowledge: Learning The Lessons Of Muhammadhttp://wrvo.org/post/fighting-extremism-knowledge-learning-lessons-muhammad
85644 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 10 Mar 2016 22:58:00 +0000Fighting Extremism With Knowledge: Learning The Lessons Of MuhammadTom GjeltenFor Muslim-Americans, there was a world before Sept. 11 and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and one after. Now, their community faces the dual threats of extremism and growing atheism.Young Muslim-Americans are angry and frustrated, but not necessarily for the reasons you might think. While bound by their religion and their community, they have opinions as diverse as their backgrounds. NPR's Tom Gjelten met a group of young American Muslims to discuss the challenges they see ahead for their community. Below, meet the participants; be sure to click the audio link above to hear their spirited conversation.Adam SbitaBorn and raised in Virginia, the 26-year-old Libyan-American is a youth counselor.On Libya after the ouster of Moammar Gadhafi and the call for solidarity among the world's MuslimsI know of people who went [to Libya] and were, like, "Yeah. What we did here in Libya, we're going to go do there in Syria and help them out, and then when we're done with Syria, we're going to goThis Is Our Islam: To Be Young, Devout And Muslim In America Todayhttp://wrvo.org/post/our-islam-be-young-devout-and-muslim-america-today
85608 as http://wrvo.orgThu, 10 Mar 2016 10:05:00 +0000This Is Our Islam: To Be Young, Devout And Muslim In America TodayTom GjeltenAntonin Scalia was just one of six Roman Catholic justices on the Supreme Court, but in his devotion to the faith he was second to none. Neighbors saw him and his wife, Maureen, worshipping frequently at St. Catherine of Siena in Great Falls, Va., a church Scalia was said to favor because it was one of the few Catholic parishes in the Washington, D.C., area that still offered a Latin mass.Scalia received his secondary and undergraduate education at Jesuit institutions, and as a justice he told students that as a young Catholic he endured meatless Fridays and fasting before Communion because the church had taught him and his peers "that we were different." While other couples had small families, Scalia and his wife raised nine children. "Being a devout Catholic means you have children when God gives them to you," he told his biographer, Joan Biskupic.The relation between Scalia's Catholicism and his judicial decision-making was complex, however. On one hand, his deeply religious beliefsScalia Expressed His Faith With The Same Fervor As His Court Opinionshttp://wrvo.org/post/scalia-expressed-his-faith-same-fervor-his-court-opinions
84531 as http://wrvo.orgSun, 14 Feb 2016 20:07:00 +0000Scalia Expressed His Faith With The Same Fervor As His Court Opinions